Chapter Thirty-Three
I stood transfixed as the little girl and I stared at each other for several moments until she blinked a few times before looking back to her father.
Logan leaned down, taking Riley’s face gently in his hands. “I will be right back, baby girl. Right back, okay?”
I continued to gape at Riley as he hurried to me, grabbed my hand, and pulled me into the hall. He paced beside me, his fingers stuck in his hair, tears still streaming from his eyes.
Logan abruptly stopped, wiped his face, and then wrapped me in a fierce hug. “I-I’m sorry I took off. They called and I just ran.”
I finally found my voice as I rubbed the back of his neck. “Don’t worry about that. I was just so scared something had happened and wanted to get here for you.”
“Th-thank you.” He held onto me, crying for long moments before taking a step back and gripping my hands .
“Her physical therapist said he walked in this morning; Riley was looking right at him and gave a tiny wave with her fingers. They’ve started tests. So far, they say she seems to have normal functions and is healthy. They have no reason to believe she isn’t awake for good.”
Getting past my shock, I fully understood what was happening and tears ran down my face as Logan told me more about what the doctors said to expect for the next few days.
They would check Riley’s cognitive functions and do blood work to confirm her organs were all working properly. If everything came back positive, they would pivot to moving her to a rehabilitation facility so she could start relearning day-to-day tasks. Walking was going to be her biggest challenge.
When he was done catching me up, Logan pulled me into a hug again.
“This is so amazing.” I sniffed as I hugged him back.
“I have to start planning things. Call my managers.” He patted his pockets, his brow scrunching as he looked for his phone. “Call my mother!”
“Oh here!” I pulled it out of my purse to hand to him. “What do you need me to do?”
Logan took the phone with a thoughtful look but then shook his head. “No. No, it’s okay. I’ve got this. I want you to enjoy your day off with Claire.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but he shook his head again.
“I’m going to be making calls all day and sitting here with Riley while they do all their tests. I will call you later and let you know if anything comes up that I might need some help with. Really, Madison, go enjoy the beach with your friend.”
I closed my mouth and bit my tongue. I wasn’t about to force my help on him. Logan said he would let me know if he needed me. I slowly nodded. “Alright, I’ll have my phone on me constantly. If you need anything call or text me.”
He kissed me gently. “I will, thank you.” He started walking backward. “Just try to enjoy yourself today,” he said before disappearing into the room.
I walked back to the doorway and peeked around the frame. Logan was sitting in the chair beside the bed now, holding Riley’s hands and talking to her quietly. I watched the little girl study her father’s face as he spoke and then she gave him a little smile.
A shiver ran through me at the sight as I wiped more tears away. It wasn’t every day you got to witness a miracle happen.
I drove home in a daze. I sent Claire a message I was running a little late when I got in the elevator. I went to the penthouse first and cleaned up the broken glass and spilled coffee before I went into the bedroom to make up the bed, doing my usual morning routine on autopilot.
I walked into my uncle’s condo a few minutes after eleven and found Claire sitting at the counter. She was wearing a smile that didn’t extend to the rest of her face as she lifted a glass of water .
“I know you’re not late from having to nurse a hangover,” she teased. My blank expression sobered her. “What’s wrong?”
I sat on the chair beside her, blew out air, and told Claire what happened.
She stared at me in silence for a long time. “That is amazing. And heavy,” she finally said in awe.
“I know.”
She went to get some more water. “Why are you home? Wouldn’t you rather be at the hospital with Logan?”
I nodded. “I would, but he said he was going to be on the phone all day and waiting on tests and didn’t want us to miss our day together.”
“That was thoughtful of him.”
“Yes, it was.” I felt a nagging in the back of my mind. “I’ll go get changed so we can head down soon.”
I understood Logan was in shock and probably had a hundred things going through his head. In all that, he had remembered my plans for the day and didn’t jump on my offer to help him. I knew he had built his life around being self-sufficient and might want to take care of and manage everything himself. I just hoped he would reach out if he realized it was too much to handle, not shoulder it all alone.
I made sure the ringer on my phone was at full volume as I went into my bedroom to get ready for the beach.
After Claire and Devin left for Orlando, I kept myself busy and finished washing and putting the new dishes away in the kitchen and some serving pieces in the new dining room buffet cabinet. When I was done, I turned on the TV as a distraction but stared at it blankly, lost in thought.
After a while, I went back to the kitchen to look for some dinner. My stomach was a mess of nerves, so I threw together a simple cheese and fruit plate before going out on the balcony to try calling Logan.
I hadn’t heard from him all day.
After several rings, it went to his voicemail so I left a message. “Just checking in. I hope everything is still going well. I would be happy to bring you something to eat, a change of clothes, anything you need. Just let me know.”
I stared at the waves in the setting sunlight as I ate. After I stuck the last grape in my mouth, I picked up my phone again to call Grace. I was really looking forward to hearing both my girls’ voices.
An hour later, I hung up after talking to her, then Sadie and checking in with my mother. I went inside, cleaned my dishes, and decided to get ready for bed.
I considered going upstairs to wait and see if Logan came home, maybe even sleep there in case he showed up late, but it wouldn’t feel right being there without him. I was in the bathroom washing my face when my phone dinged. I quickly finished, hurried to the nightstand, and opened a text from Logan.
I responded, telling Logan how happy I was to hear the news, and that I hoped he got some rest as well.
I finished getting ready for bed and climbed beneath the covers. I lay in the silence, realizing this was the first night I’d sleep alone since my first with Logan. I turned off the light and sighed as I rolled over, missing his arms around me, feeling a little sad he hadn’t called me back so I could at least hear his voice.
I woke Tuesday feeling groggy, not having slept well at all. I’d kept waking and checking my phone to be sure Logan hadn’t reached out. I sent him a message that I was up and to let me know if he or Riley needed anything.
As the day wore on, my anxiety grew that I wasn’t hearing from Logan. I felt guilty for it, trying to keep in mind that we were in a fresh relationship, and on top of all the sudden changes to his life and things that had to get done, he might not be comfortable with me being around right now.
He would’ve had to tell Riley that her mother was gone. It was completely understandable the last thing he would want to do was drop another woman into her life. It was just making me very uneasy that he didn’t want help from me at all though.
I knew we had been living in a bit of a bubble for the last few weeks and it had been unexpectedly popped. I’d gotten used to spending so much time with him, doing things for each other, starting to rely on each other to a certain extent. I told myself I needed to adjust to exiting the little universe we had been occupying together. I already knew that had been coming when my family arrived soon. I’d just been jolted back to the real world sooner than expected.
After work, I stayed at my desk and started a list. Riley would be able to go home soon. Logan had so much to focus on already and probably wasn’t thinking that far ahead. Having raised two girls myself, I thought putting together a list for him of things she would likely need or want could be a way to help. I also started including things Riley might enjoy having while still in the hospital, the types of treats, and fun things my girls liked.
The timing was completely up to Logan, but if he was fine with it, the girls and I could make a shopping trip when they got here over the weekend and take a big care package to Riley when we got to meet her. I smiled as I thought of more and more things to write down, imagining Sadie’s excitement to help pick some of them out.
I spoke with my mother and the girls that evening. Then I unloaded the new bathroom towels from the dryer, folded them, and put them away in the cabinet in the main bathroom. The last thing to do in that room was change out the vanity nobs and I had that done in less than 20 minutes.
I was getting ready for bed again when I got a text from Logan.
I chewed my lip, happy to hear from him but dejected he hadn’t shared much, hadn’t called me once, and still wasn’t asking for help. I frowned at the screen as I texted him back a goodnight.
Wednesday morning, after another restless night, I decided I would run by the hospital to drop off a change of clothes and some non-hospital food for Logan after work. I missed his face and wanted to do something for him even if he wouldn’t ask for it himself.
I showered and dressed before sitting down at my desk to knock out my workday. At five, I shut my system down and ran to Logan’s place to grab a change of clothes and some toiletries for him, then I headed to The Beach Brew.